DIRS.INFO The most relevant business & tech news

☆ North Korean Hackers, Criminals Share Money Laundering Networks in Southeast Asia - UN
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-15 | by ( Jan. | At A.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: +2 min

By Tom WilsonLONDON (Reuters) - North Korean hackers are sharing money-laundering and underground banking networks with fraudsters and drug traffickers in Southeast Asia, according to a United Nations report published on Monday, with casinos and crypto exchanges emerging as key venues for organised crime. Funds stolen by North Korean hackers are a key source of funding for Pyongyang and its weapons programmes. The junket sector has been infiltrated by organised crime for "industrial-scale money laundering and underground banking operations," with links to drug trafficking and cyberfraud, the report said. The proliferation of casinos and crypto have "supercharged" organised crime groups in Southeast Asia, UNODC Regional Representative for Southeast Asia and the Pacific Jeremy Douglas told Reuters. "It's no surprise sophisticated threat actors would look to leverage the same underground banking systems and service providers," he said.

Persons: Tom Wilson LONDON, Lazarus, Pacific Jeremy Douglas, Tom Wilson, Tommy Reggiori Wilkes, Angus MacSwan Organizations: United, United Nations Office, Drugs, Korea's, United Nations, North, Casinos, Bangladesh's Central Bank, Lazarus, UNODC Regional Representative, Southeast, Pacific, Reuters Locations: Southeast Asia, United Nations, Myanmar, Thailand, Laos, Cambodia, North, Geneva, United States, Pyongyang, Philippines

According to data firm Preqin, only one emerging markets greenfield renewables fund has raised more than Copenhagen wants to amass, although the 2014 $3.26 billion Guangzhou City Development Industry Fund is focused on China. While a deal to phase out fossil fuels has been hard to agree, more than 60 countries have backed a global agreement to triple renewable energy this decade. The growth in demand for electricity is enormous," he told Reuters, adding that renewable energy was often the cheapest energy source. Founded in 2012, Denmark's Copenhagen manages 26 billion euros ($28.3 billion) of assets and runs 12 funds. Recent development projects include an offshore wind farm in Bangladesh and the first 100% foreign-owned offshore wind energy schemes in the Philippines.

Persons: Niels Holst, Holst, Simon Jessop, Tommy Reggiori Wilkes, Jan Harvey Organizations: Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners, Reuters, Guangzhou City Development Industry Fund, Denmark's, Thomson Locations: DUBAI, Copenhagen, China, Dubai, Britain, Denmark's Copenhagen, Bangladesh, Philippines, Asia, Pacific, America

President of the United Arab Emirates Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan attends the United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP28) in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, December 1, 2023. REUTERS/Amr Alfiky Acquire Licensing RightsDUBAI, Dec 1 (Reuters) - United Arab Emirates President Sheikh Mohammed Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, whose country is hosting the COP28 climate summit, announced on Friday the establishment of a $30 billion climate fund that aims to attract $250 billion of investment by the end of the decade. Dubbed ALTÉRRA, the fund will allocate $25 billion towards climate strategies and $5 billion specifically to incentivise investment flows into the Global South, according to a statement by the COP28 Presidency. ALTÉRRA has also committed to invest $2 billion into its second Brookfield Global Transition Fund. ALTÉRRA was established by Lunate, a newly set up Abu Dhabi-based alternative investment manager with over $50 billion in assets.

Persons: United Arab Emirates Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Amr Alfiky, Sheikh Mohammed Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, ALTÉRRA, BlackRock, Abu, Sheikh Tahnoon bin Zayed Al Nahyan, William James, Nadine Awadalla, Al Sayegh, Tommy Reggiori Wilkes, Susan Fenton, Sharon Singleton, Miral Organizations: United, United Nations, Change, United Arab Emirates, REUTERS, Rights, BlackRock, TPG, Brookfield Asset Management, Transition, Lunate, Chimera Investment, Reuters, Thomson Locations: United Arab Emirates, Dubai, United Arab, COP28, Brookfield, Abu Dhabi, UAE

☆ Exclusive: Four banks quit initiative assessing climate targets
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-29 | by ( Tommy Wilkes | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

LONDON, Nov 29 (Reuters) - Four major banks, including Standard Chartered Plc (STAN.L) and HSBC Plc (HSBA.L), have quit a United Nations-backed initiative to scrutinise climate targets set by corporations, according to people familiar with the matter. Many lenders say they should finance fossil fuels as long as economies depend on them. The spokesperson added that Standard Chartered was seeking alternative third-party validation of its climate targets and that it was setting science-based targets through the NZBA. It will still require them to cease the financing of fossil fuel projects that would weigh on their longer-term emissions targets. Credit Agricole (CAGR.PA), ING (INGA.AS), BBVA (BBVA.MC) and Swedbank (SWEDa.ST) told Reuters they remained committed to SBTi validating their emissions targets.

Persons: SBTi, SBTi's, Pietro Rocco, haven't, it's, Rocco, Tommy Reggiori Wilkes, Simon Jessop, Josie Kao Organizations: Standard Chartered, HSBC Plc, United, Societe Generale SA, ABN Amro Bank, Zero Banking Alliance, HSBC, Societe Generale, ABN Amro, Reuters, Credit, ING, BBVA, NatWest, Commerzbank, BNP, Allianz, Alliance, Zero, Carbon Trust, Thomson Locations: United Nations, Nations, Paris, U.S, decarbonising, London

"This COP we need to see accelerated action from all parties," Matt Bell, EY Global Climate Change and Sustainability Services Leader, said. The business and finance sectors have long called for a global carbon emissions price that they say would level the playing field for polluters and make the switch to low-carbon more cost-effective. Confidence in voluntary carbon markets has fallen this year as critics question the environmental credibility of projects. "The last 10% of a (corporate) carbon reduction plan will always include some carbon removal credits," Leggett said, adding that "the market needs clarity on what that means." Reporting by Simon Jessop and Tommy Reggiori Wilkes; editing by Barbara LewisOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Yves Herman, Matt Bell, Bell, Sultan Al Jaber, Virginie Derue, Katherine Dixon, Victoria Leggett, Leggett, Simon Jessop, Tommy Reggiori Wilkes, Barbara Lewis Organizations: REUTERS, United Nations, Sustainability Services, Reuters, ESG Research, AXA Investment, Accenture, Bain & Company, UBP, Thomson Locations: Dunkirk, France, Dubai, COP28, Paris, China, United States

Blended finance see providers of public money - typically government aid departments, development finance institutions or charitable donors - agree to accept more risk in a fund to encourage private sector investors to join. The money raised through blended finance funds is a fraction of what's needed. The new 25-year SDG Loan Fund is structured so that FMO takes the first loss should the loans turn sour. Private investors, which include Allianz and Skandia, will be the last to lose money. But this loan fund structure ensured "everyone's interest is aligned," she said, noting that private investors can start getting their money back when loans begin amortising in a few years.

Persons: Tilman Blasshofer, FMO, That's, Nadia Nikolova, Nikolova, Nic Wessemius, FMO's, Wessemius, Tommy Reggiori Wilkes, Simon Jessop, Mark Potter Organizations: Allianz Global Investors, REUTERS, MacArthur Foundation, LONDON, Private, Allianz, Skandia, FMO, Reuters, concessional, Investment, Thomson Locations: Frankfurt, Germany, Dubai

☆ Big Oil has a place in ESG funds, says Deutsche Bank CIO
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-21 | by ( Tommy Wilkes | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Fossil fuel stocks have boomed (.dMIWO0OG00PUS) since Russia's invasion of Ukraine in February 2022 sent fossil fuel prices soaring, leaving the performance of environmental, social and governance (ESG) funds lagging. Pure-play renewable energy stocks such as Orsted (ORSTED.CO) and First Solar (FSLR.O) have also fallen sharply this year as higher interest rates and inflationary pressures squeeze profitability. European oil and gas companies including BP (BP.L) and Shell (SHEL.L) have increased renewable energy investment, although they are expanding production of dirtier energy too. Sustainability-minded investors, Müller said, needed more disclosures from firms about their plans for shifting to lower-carbon models, and regulatory clarity on labelling transition-focused funds. Morningstar estimates that 45% of funds have exposure to traditional energy, totalling 7 billion euros ($7.6 billion).

Persons: Markus Müller, Müller, Tommy Reggiori Wilkes, Susan Fenton Organizations: Deutsche Bank's Private Bank, Reuters, BP, Shell, ISR, Morningstar, Investors, Deutsche, Investment Office, Thomson Locations: Ukraine, France, Europe

☆ Top companies' lobbying undermines their climate pledges, study finds
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-16 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

InfluenceMap uses the United Nations' High-Level Expert Group's (HLEG) 'Integrity Matters' guidance on the need to align lobbying with climate commitments. Catherine McKenna, Chair of the U.N.'s HLEG on Net Zero Emissions Commitments of Non-State Entities, said the findings should be a "wake-up call" for businesses. "Not only are many companies choosing to undermine their own climate commitments by lobbying against climate action, their net zero commitments are simply not credible," she said. InfluenceMap, founded in 2015 to encourage action to tackle the climate crisis, highlighted companies at the most significant risk of 'net zero greenwash'. "Governments are failing to progress climate policy at the speed needed, and corporate influence is a key reason why," said Will Aitchison, the study's lead author.

Persons: Arnd, Catherine McKenna, InfluenceMap, Glencore, Will Aitchison, Tommy Reggiori Wilkes, Barbara Lewis Organizations: REUTERS, ExxonMobil, Forbes, Nations, European Union, U.S . Environmental, Stellantis, Thomson Locations: Baar, Switzerland, U.S

A view of the exterior of the JP Morgan Chase & Co. corporate headquarters in New York City May 20, 2015. "We need to build a funding model for green tech companies," Chuka Umunna, JP Morgan's (JPM.N) head of EMEA ESG and green economy investment banking, told the Reuters Energy Transition Europe 2023 event in London. This was partly because of the capital requirements for some green tech firms in early stages of development, he said. Investment into green tech was also being stymied by bureaucracy, including delays to permitting for the infrastructure needed for renewable energy and other projects. Umunna also said a shift to a greener, lower-carbon economy offered up a huge opportunity for banks such as JP Morgan.

Persons: Morgan Chase, Mike Segar, Morgan, Umunna, JP Morgan's, JP Morgan, Simon Jessop, Tommy Reggiori Wilkes, David Goodman, Alexander Smith Organizations: Co, New York City, REUTERS, EMEA, Reuters, Capital, British, Investment, Thomson Locations: New York, London, Europe

Sustainability-linked loans (SLL), which were first used in 2017, offer slightly cheaper borrowing, typically around 2.5-10 basis points less, if companies meet goals such as cutting their carbon emissions or improving board diversity. These let banks strip the sustainability-linked label from the loans if targets are no longer deemed appropriate. The banks' tougher standards are discouraging some borrowers from using SLLs entirely, bankers and lawyers told Reuters. The Engie spokesman said the utility would not agree to linking an event of default to sustainability targets. "We have stated our willingness to walk away when sustainability targets were too soft," said Brittany Agostino, vice president in the environmental, social and governance group at Los Angeles-based Ares.

Persons: Toby Melville, Banks, Constance Chalchat, Pascale Forde Maurice, Elliot Beard, Simmons, Beard, I've, David Milligan, Norton Rose Fulbright, Gemma Lawrence, Pardew, Brittany Agostino, Fredrik Altmann, Tommy Reggiori Wilkes, Isla Binnie, Shankar Ramakrishnan, Simon Jessop, Alexander Smith Organizations: FCA, Financial, Authority, REUTERS, LONDON, BNP, Corporate, Institutional Banking, Reuters, JPMorgan, Ford Motors, SLLs, CIB's, European, Sustainable Investment Banking, Simmons, Norton Rose, Market Association, BMW, Porsche, Thomson Locations: London, Britain, North America, Asia, Los Angeles, New York

☆ Europe's ESG funds suffer more outflows - Morningstar
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-25 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Investors pulled 20.5 billion euros ($21.7 billion) from funds in the European Union's lower sustainability classification, while net inflows into the higher classification were their lowest since early 2021, the Morningstar report said. U.S sustainability funds are also struggling. Morningstar data on Tuesday showed managers closing funds faster than they opened new ones in the third quarter. Investors exited U.S. funds in general in the period but sustainable funds fared worse, registering their fourth consecutive quarter of outflows. In Europe, ESG funds launches totalled 126 in the third quarter, down 31% from the second quarter, Morningstar said.

Persons: Morningstar, Tommy Reggiori Wilkes, David Evans Organizations: Investors, Investment, Sustainable, Morningstar, Thomson Locations: outflows, Europe, U.S

☆ Nestle, Volvo among 130 companies urging COP28 agreement to ditch fossil fuels
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-23 | by ( Tommy Wilkes | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

LONDON, Oct 23 (Reuters) - Companies including Nestle (NESN.S), Unilever (ULVR.L), Mahindra Group and Volvo Cars are urging political leaders to agree a timeline at the upcoming U.N. climate summit to phase out fossil fuels. "Our businesses are feeling the impacts and cost of increasing extreme weather events resulting from climate change," the companies wrote in the letter, which was coordinated by the non-profit We Mean Business Coalition, which is pushing for greater climate action globally. "To decarbonise the global energy system, we need to ramp up clean energy as fast as we phase out the use and production of fossil fuels," they wrote. The speed at which countries should phase out fossil fuels will be one of the thorniest issues. Reporting by Tommy Reggiori Wilkes; Editing by Emelia Sithole-MatariseOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: COP28, Tommy Reggiori Wilkes, Emelia Sithole Organizations: Companies, Nestle, Unilever, Mahindra Group, Volvo, Business Coalition, Bayer, Heineken, IKEA, Thomson Locations: Dubai, Paris, Europe

But bitcoin fell sharply after a Fox Business reporter said on the social media platform X that BlackRock denied the report. loadingBlackRock later confirmed to Reuters that "the iShares Bitcoin ETP application is still under review by the SEC." "Crypto markets have just shown how sensitive they are to any potential good news, with their premature rally today on rumors of the approval of a spot bitcoin ETF," said Ben Laidler, global markets strategist at eToro. Crypto markets have been awaiting news on several pending spot bitcoin ETF applications, which, if approved, are widely expected to drive investment in the sector. The SEC has denied all spot bitcoin ETF applications on the grounds applicants have not shown they can protect investors from market manipulation.

Persons: Dado Ruvic, bitcoin, Ben Laidler, Joseph Edwards, Lucas Kiely, Tom Wilson, Elizabeth Howcroft, Hannah Lang, Suzanne McGee, Tommy Reggiori Wilkes, Sharon Singleton, Josie Kao Organizations: REUTERS, BlackRock, U.S . Securities, Exchange Commission, Fox Business, Reuters, SEC, Securities, Columbia, Thomson Locations: WASHINGTON, London, Washington

☆ Global economic losses from extreme weather could hit $5 trln -Lloyd's
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-11 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Lloyd's, which carried out the research alongside the Cambridge Centre for Risk Studies, stressed that its "systemic risk scenario", which models the global economic impact of extreme weather, was hypothetical. But it said the work would improve business and policymaker understanding of their exposure to critical threats such as extreme weather. When adjusting the estimated $5 trillion in losses over a five-year period for the probability of those extreme weather events occurring, the expected global economic losses were $711 billion, Lloyd's said. Lloyd's modelled global economic losses of extreme weather events by estimating the impact of food and water shocks on global gross domestic product over a five-year period. The Caribbean region would lose 19% of its GDP over five years if the extreme weather events were concentrated there, Lloyd's estimated.

Persons: Umit, Lloyd's, Trevor Maynard, Tommy Reggiori Wilkes, Mark Heinrich Our Organizations: REUTERS, Cambridge Centre, Risk, Thomson Locations: Turkey's, Istanbul, Turkey, London, Greater China, Caribbean

A general view of GE Renewable Energy wind turbines, part of Pattern Energy’s Western Spirit Wind project, the largest wind project in the U.S., near Encino, New Mexico, U.S., March 15, 2023. Renewable energy funds globally suffered a net outflow of $1.4 billion in the July-September quarter, the biggest ever quarterly outflow, according to LSEG Lipper data. Reuters GraphicsInvestors have been exiting traditional energy funds, too, but the rate has slowed - net outflows reached $438 million in the last quarter compared with $3.32 billion in the previous three months. Reuters GraphicsDemand for exposure to renewable energy had been a major driver of cash flowing into climate-related funds in recent years. Wind projects off Britain, the Netherlands and Norway have been delayed or shelved due to rising costs and supply chain constraints, raising concerns about countries hitting their 2030 renewable energy targets.

Persons: Bing Guan, Denmark's, Madeline Ruid, Ruid, Morningstar, they're, Rich Pontillo, Patturaja, Tommy Reggiori Wilkes, Simon Jessop, Tomasz Janowski Organizations: GE Renewable Energy, REUTERS, Investors, Reuters Graphics, Companies, U.S . Infrastructure, Clean Energy Exchange, Energy, Reuters, Nasdaq, Intelligence, Thomson Locations: U.S, Encino , New Mexico, BENGALURU, LONDON, Britain, Netherlands, Norway, Bengaluru, London

☆ Banks behind 70% jump in greenwashing incidents in 2023 -report
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-03 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

REUTERS/Stephanie Lecocq/File Photo Acquire Licensing RightsLONDON, Oct 3 (Reuters) - The number of instances of greenwashing by banks and financial services companies around the world rose 70% in the past 12 months from the previous 12 months, a report on Tuesday showed. European financial institutions accounted for most of those instances, and much of the greenwashing involved claims about fossil fuels. "Over 50% of these climate-specific greenwashing risk incidents either mentioned fossil fuels or linked a financial institution to an oil and gas company. The European Banking Federation did not respond to a request for comment on the increasing number of greenwashing incidents found by RepRisk. The banking and financial services industry is second only to oil and gas for the number of greenwashing incidents, RepRisk said.

Persons: Stephanie Lecocq, RepRisk, greenwashing, Tommy Reggiori Wilkes, Mark Potter, Jan Harvey Organizations: La Defense, REUTERS, UK Finance, European Banking Federation, watchdogs, Thomson Locations: Paris, France

☆ Three-quarters of firms globally are not ready for new ESG rules, KPMG finds
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-26 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

REUTERS/Stephanie Lecocq/File Photo Acquire Licensing RightsLONDON, Sept 26 (Reuters) - Three-quarters of companies globally are not ready to have their environmental, social and governance (ESG) data audited externally months before new regulations kick in, according to a new report from KPMG published on Tuesday. Regulators say external auditing of sustainability-related data - while not as extensive as financial auditing - is crucial for giving investors information free of misleading environmental claims, known as greenwashing. The EU rules will require disclosures be audited while countries adopting the International Sustainability Standards Board's reporting requirements can also demand external checking. Yet of 750 companies surveyed by KPMG, only 25% feel they are sufficiently prepared. KPMG's ESG Assurance Maturity Index assessed the views of executives and board members across industries, regions and different firm sizes to measure companies preparedness.

Persons: Stephanie Lecocq, Larry Bradley, Mike Shannon, Tommy Reggiori Wilkes Organizations: La Defense, REUTERS, KPMG, Union, KPMG's, Audit, Global, ESG Assurance, Standards, Thomson Locations: Paris, France, EU, Japan, United States, Brazil, China

☆ Asia apparel hubs face $65 billion export hit from extreme weather, study shows
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-12 | by ( Tommy Wilkes | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

The study also mapped out the supply chains of six unidentified global apparel brands operating in the four countries studied - Bangladesh, Cambodia, Pakistan and Vietnam - and found all six would be hit materially. There are some [apparel] brands not disclosing the factory locations of their suppliers," said Angus Bauer, Schroders' head of sustainable investment research. Using projections, the researchers analysed future heat and flooding levels to estimate what would happen under a "climate adaptive" scenario and a "high heat and flooding" scenario. Flooding will also force factories to close in the four countries, which account for 18% of global apparel exports and employ 10.6 million workers in apparel and footwear factories. By 2050, lost export earnings would reach 68.6% and there would be 8.64 million fewer jobs.

Persons: Jason Judd, Judd, Angus Bauer, Schroders, Bauer, Tommy Reggiori Wilkes, Mark Potter Organizations: Cornell University, Reuters, Cornell Global Labor Institute, Thomson Locations: Bangladesh, Cambodia, Pakistan, Vietnam

☆ IKEA stores owner Ingka plans recycling expansion
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-06 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Ingka Investments' Peter van der Poel told a panel at the Reuters IMPACT conference in London that a recycling initiative in the Netherlands would be expanded to markets including France, Belgium and Scandinavia. "The thing here is to understand in many markets in Europe, still incineration is incentivised (over) recycling. Ingka Investments is the investment arm of Ingka Group, which owns and operates the majority of IKEA stores. Investing in what it calls the circular economy, which includes recycling, is part of Ingka's sustainable investment portfolio, alongside renewable energy and forests. Van der Poel says this is viable because Ingka has an investment horizon of "generations", out to 100 years.

Persons: Anna Ringstrom, Peter van der Poel, Van der Poel, Tommy Reggiori Wilkes, Emma Rumney, Simon Jessop, Jan Harvey Organizations: REUTERS, Ingka, Ingka Investments, Reuters IMPACT, Investments, IKEA, Thomson Locations: Stockholm, Sweden, Europe, London, Netherlands, France, Belgium, Scandinavia, North America

☆ Exclusive: Banks vote to limit accounting of emissions in bond and stock sales
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-30 | by ( Tommy Wilkes | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

Banks' accounting of these emissions will impact their targets for becoming carbon-neutral. The banks have also expressed concern about capital market-related emissions dwarfing their lending-related emissions, the sources said. The Partnership for Carbon Accounting Financials (PCAF), an association of banks seeking to harmonise carbon accounting across the industry, formed the working group comprising major banks in the hope that others will follow the standard that emerges. PCAF's board will now have the final say on whether to adopt the 33% accounting share for capital markets. A Standard Chartered spokesperson said the bank was comfortable with any emissions accounting threshold and declined to comment further.

Persons: Banks, Morgan Stanley, PCAF, ShareAction, Xavier Lerin, Tommy Reggiori Wilkes, Greg Roumeliotis, Rosalba O'Brien Organizations: Sierra Club, Carbon Accounting, Barclays, Bank of America, Citigroup, HSBC, BNP, NatWest, Standard Chartered, United Nations, Thomson Locations: London

☆ Canadian pension fund taps Europe's green hydrogen hopes with Dutch investment
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-11 | by ( Tommy Wilkes | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

LONDON, July 11 (Reuters) - Canada's biggest pension fund, CPP Investments, has made its first bet on green hydrogen playing a growing role in cutting emissions, with a 130 million euro ($143 million) investment and the purchase of a majority stake in a three-year-old Dutch firm. "Europe is generally seen as the leading industrial market or consumer for these green molecules. Power2X's current projects include a green hydrogen and ammonia development in Portugal and a solar power and green hydrogen project in Spain. Expanding green hydrogen production will require more renewable power generation, and some questions remain over its potential use cases versus other low-emission technologies. Last month Canada's Investment Management Corporation of Ontario announced a $400 million investment in Sweden's battery producer Northvolt.

Persons: Bruce Hogg, CPPI, Hogg, Occo Roelofsen, Tommy Reggiori Wilkes, Conor Humphries Organizations: Investments, Reuters, Investor, McKinsey, Investment Management Corporation of Ontario, Thomson Locations: Amsterdam, Europe, Portugal, Spain, Power2X

Reuters GraphicsAnalysts said the data underlined that once-booming ESG funds were no longer immune from wider market dynamics. BELOW PEAKNet assets across ESG funds fell in the second quarter and to below recent peaks, according to Refinitiv. Morningstar's global director of sustainability research, Hortense Bioy, said their preliminary data suggested demand for more stringent ESG funds appeared resilient. However, she said that managers' desire to meet European Union regulations had encouraged some firms to reclassify their ESG funds as traditional products, impacting investor flows. The anti-ESG backlash had also hit U.S. firms' appetite for marketing sustainable funds, "which has had an impact on sales," Bioy said on the sidelines of a conference this week.

Persons: outpacing, Edward Glyn, ESG, Hortense Bioy, Bioy, Tommy Reggiori Wilkes, Patturaja, David Holmes Organizations: Equity, Reuters, Reuters Graphics Analysts, outflows, ESG, Reuters Graphics, Thomson Locations: Europe, United States, Calastone

☆ Exclusive: Insurers look to ease UN climate alliance rules after member exodus - sources
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-04 | by ( Tommy Wilkes | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

The U.N.-convened Net-Zero Insurance Alliance (NZIA) is set to remove a six-month deadline for members to publish greenhouse gas emissions targets alongside other changes to make membership less prescriptive, the sources said. The hope is to "steady the ship" and create space for ex-members to consider returning later, they said. The changes under discussion have not been finalised, the sources said, and it's not clear how the alliance would deal with insurers that drag their feet in publishing targets. Remaining members believe the NZIA still has a valuable role, and point to methodologies it developed for assessing and reporting on underwriting-linked emissions. France's AXA, which chaired the NZIA before quitting in May, last week published its first emissions goals for its insurance portfolio.

Persons: Italy's, Peter Bosshard, Bosshard, Canada's Beneva, Tommy Reggiori Wilkes, Greg Roumeliotis, Simon Jessop, Emelia, David Evans Organizations: Zero Insurance Alliance, United, Zero Insurance, AXA, Tokio, Republican, Glasgow Financial Alliance, Aviva, Alliance, Insurance Australia Group, France's AXA, Thomson Locations: United Nations, London, United States, U.S

The World Bank and others also said they would start adding clauses to lending terms that allow vulnerable states to suspend debt repayments when natural disaster strikes. Specifically, for the first time, the document acknowledged the potential need for richer countries to provide fresh money to multilateral development institutions like the World Bank. Another first was in the explicit target for multilateral development banks to leverage "at least" $100 billion a year in private sector capital when they lend. All eyes now turn to more traditional events later in the year, including the International Monetary Fund and World Bank annual meetings, a G20 meeting in September and the COP28 climate talks in Dubai. Persaud said his focus would be on making sure the plan to scale up multilateral development bank lending was in place by the time of annual meetings in October, and that pilot work began on reducing the cost of capital for developing countries.

Persons: Macron, Mia Mottley, Avinash Persaud, What's, Persaud, Teresa Anderson, They've, Sonia Dunlop, Simon Jessop, Leigh Thomas, Tommy Reggiori Wilkes, Mark Heinrich Our Organizations: Global, Pact, Reuters, World Bank, International Maritime Organisation, Paris Summit, Climate Justice, ActionAid, International Monetary Fund, Bank, Thomson Locations: Barbados, PARIS, Bridgetown, Zambia, Paris, Dubai

☆ Mastercard launches global plan to recycle credit cards
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-21 | by ( Simon Jessop | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Under the plan, Mastercard will provide shredding machines to HSBC, each of which is capable of holding 10,000 cards, equivalent to 50 kg (110 pounds) of plastic. Once full, it will be transferred to a plastic recycling facility. The pilot project, which will run for an initial six months, will allow customers to recycle any plastic card, including those from rivals. Currently, Mastercard said it has around 3.1 billion cards in circulation. Each year, it estimates around 600 million cards are produced by the industry, each with a life span of around five years.

Persons: Ajay Bhalla, Jose Carvalho, Nilson, Simon Jessop, Tommy Reggiori Wilkes, Jonathan Oatis Organizations: HSBC Mastercard, Payments, Mastercard, Wednesday, HSBC Holdings Plc, Mastercard Inc, HSBC, HSBC UK, Thomson Locations: Britain

Search resuls for: "Tommy Reggiori Wilkes"

25 mentions found